


Christmas Don't End in Blood: Donna

by BaredWolf



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Christmas, Collaboration, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-26 09:34:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17139356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BaredWolf/pseuds/BaredWolf
Summary: This is my contribution to Christmas Don't End in Blood: Bunker Secret Santa 2018. A bunch of fantastic authors wrote chapters for the other characters! Read the whole work here! https://archiveofourown.org/works/17124194





	Christmas Don't End in Blood: Donna

**Author's Note:**

> Here is the complete story: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17124194   
> This chapter is my contribution!

Donna had to admit that young Jack Kline’s call had come as something of a surprise—not that she minded. Ever since things, well, went south with Doug, she had been sort of dreading the holidays. Of course, planning to spend it with Jody and the girls had given her something positive to look forward to, but heading down to Lebanon for a party didn’t sound like such a bad time either. To make things even easier, Jack told her that her Secret Santa giftee would be Alex.

It was kind of adorable, too, the kid’s earnest desire to experience Christmas. And darn tootin’ she was gonna help him out. Everybody deserved to have happy memories of family gatherings for the holidays. Even if that family was a rag-tag bunch of monster hunters. Probably especially in that particular case.

Donna wouldn’t rather spend the holiday with anybody else, anyways.

And as Jody had put it, Doug was a pansy for bailing on her. Well, Jody hadn’t used the word pansy. But it was close enough.

Still, the holidays were always the hardest after you lost someone—whether they were gone, or just gone from your life. Donna didn’t really feel up to heading to her extended relatives’ Christmas gathering and answering all of their questions—and dealing with all of their unsolicited advice—about her current lack of a love life. She didn’t want to lie to her family about the reasons why, either. Spending Christmas with Jody and the girls, and now the rest of their big hunter family, should be just the ticket to keep her Christmas cheer rolling. Soon enough, the holidays would be past.

Donna had been delighted when Jack invited her to take part in the Secret Santa gift exchange. His joy at her response had made her smile even wider. It was both hard to remember and hard to forget how young he was sometimes. Not even two, and already throwing his first Christmas party. Sam, Dean, and Castiel must be proud of how far he had come. Especially after everything that he had been through.

It was easier, sometimes, to be around other people who had gone through hard stuff too.

Still, she had already purchased a gift for Alex before the Secret Santa. She decided it might be cheating to just give Alex the gift she had gotten her for Christmas anyway. It wasn’t really in the spirit of Secret Santa. And Christmas was all about the spirit of things. 

Besides, shopping for Alex and preparing to celebrate in Lebanon gave her something to focus on. Something productive. She had spent the weeks between Thanksgiving and now clearing out every vampire nest she could find, filled with a growing desperation to keep her mind occupied as the holidays approached.

So, as she drove the D-Train down the freeway, she thought about what she might pick out. She had already gotten Alex the heavy-duty hand cream that her aunt always loved—nurses and farmers both got terribly chapped hands in the winter. It smelled like honey. Donna had almost gotten some more for herself, but it hadn’t seemed right. Christmas wasn’t about buying yourself gifts, after all.

The temptation to buy the girl a few heavy-weight silver rings crossed her mind again. But Christmas wasn’t a time to give Alex more weapons, it was time to give her something nice. Alex, like Jack, could use a good Christmas spoiling.

She hadn’t found anything in Stillwater, and at long last had decided she would just make a stop along the way to Lebanon. Maybe being out of her familiar environment would help spark some ideas. She thought, letting her mind wander over various things that Alex might want or need.

She should have known better, or at least that’s what she would tell herself. Letting her mind wander was too dangerous these days because as her mind drifted she found herself wondering what Doug might be doing on this cold night. It was getting icy cold these days. He probably just heated up one of those darn TV dinners he liked so much and…

It didn’t matter. She told herself to snap out of it and focus. What should she get Alex?

Donna sighed. Her mind was swimming, dark shapes swirling amid the lights of the freeway and full of the ghosts of Christmas past. It was time to employ her Dad’s favorite Christmas shopping strategy: go to the mall and walk around until you see something that looks like the person would like it. The lights and the music and the other shoppers would help too. Who could be sorry for themselves in the middle of so much Christmas spirit?

And if that didn’t work, she had pegged a possible vamp about only about fifty miles out of her way. She could always make another pit stop to take care of that.

Her phone rang.

“Hey ya, Jodes. How’s the driving?”

“Well, if I could get all of our restroom breaks on the same schedule, I think we’d get there faster. But the weather is holding out. How about you? What time do you think you’ll get in?”

“Oh, you know. Smooth sailing. I’ll be getting in late, though. Just passed Omaha, and I gotta make a pit stop for a little something.”

“Alright, well, you call me if you get tired. And I’ll text you if we get in before you do.”

“Alrighty then. See you soon.”

“Bye, Donna.” They hung up. Donna felt a fresh wash of excitement: she couldn’t wait to have her whole hunter family together again. Maybe just being with the people who accepted you was the best way to spend Christmas.

The bright lights of Lincoln, Nebraska appeared over the horizon, cresting the long straight stretch of I-80 with the promise of a rest. Donna never did like how early it got dark in the winter, but she should have plenty of time to stop in at the mall and then drive the couple of remaining hours to the bunker tonight. She had been driving since lunchtime and the stop at the mall should be just what she needed.

The mall parking lot was busy, and Donna had to circle around for a few minutes to find a parking spot for the D-Train. When she stepped down from the big truck, she smiled and drew in a deep breath. The temperature had to be in the low forties. It was practically balmy compared to Stillwater. Still, she left her gloves on as she started the long trek from the back of the parking lot into the mall.

Christmas lights twinkled merrily at her, and the standard holiday fare blasted cheerfully from overhead speakers as she entered the Gateway Mall. Shoppers hurried around, their arms full of bags, as they scrambled to finish up last minute purchases. A mother tried to negotiate with an over-tired toddler, but it looked to Donna like she was losing that battle. A woman smiled beatifically at a man in an over-sized jewelry store advertisement.

“Gag,” Donna muttered. But quietly, she wondered what Doug might have picked out for her this year.

She stepped around the advertisement to glance at the mall’s directory, but none of the store names really jumped out at her. Her stomach rumbled. Okay, one store name had jumped out at her.

Ten minutes later, armed with a warm and deliciously soft pretzel, Donna wandered the corridors of the mall. The music was ferociously upbeat, and it was making her feel a little bit better. Eating was probably helping too: she tended to get a little hangry.

Soon, the pretzel was gone, however, and she was still at a loss. She stood outside of a jewelry store, glancing through their offerings.

“Look, look what I found! Isn’t this perfect for him?”

A woman showed a scarf—thick and warm-looking—to her companion excitedly.

“Oh, that’s amazing. It’s so soft! Dad will love it!”

The scarf was beautiful, with bright patterns in red and white. It had a big N on each of the ends.

“Excuse me,” she said to the women, who both turned to her with identical surprised but patiently expectant looks on their faces. These two must be sisters, she decided. “Can you tell me where you found that? It’s beautiful.”

“Oh sure!” the first woman chirped. “Just over there, there’s one of those little stands, a whatcha call it—“

“A kiosk,” her sister supplied.

“Right, a kiosk! And this lady, she hand knits all of these things and sets up here at Christmas to sell them! She has so many wonderful things!”

“Just over there? Thanks!” Donna headed off in the direction that the women had indicated.

The small kiosk had only a smattering of items remaining, but each one was clearly skillfully made. Donna brushed her fingers over a scarf. It was very soft and looked warm enough to stand up to a Sioux Falls winter.

“Hi! Can I help you?” A short brunette appeared from around the other side of the kiosk.

“Oh, hey! Sorry about that, I didn’t see you there. I was just admiring these things.” Donna indicated the scarf self-consciously. As she looked around, she felt disappointment creeping up on her: the things were beautiful, but not a one of them said “Alex” to her.

“I knit them myself,” the woman smiled. “I don’t have a lot of selection left, but there are some scarves here, hats right here, and, hmm, let me see.” She disappeared around the side of the kiosk again. She reappeared a moment later.

“I still have these. They were a custom order, but the lady just called and canceled on me. So, I suppose I should set them out.” Donna’s heart nearly skipped a beat when she saw what the woman was holding.

It was a pair of thick, warm-looking mittens knit in grey and blue yarn. Down the middle of the back of the hand was a rod with two snakes wound around it, and a pair of wings crested the rod. Donna knew that symbol: it was the symbol for medicine. It had a funny name that she couldn’t quite remember, but she knew that Alex would know it.

“I don’t suppose these were supposed to be a gift for a nurse?” she asked.

“They were!” The woman laughed. “I don’t suppose you’re looking for a gift for a nurse?”

Donna grinned. “I think it’s both of our lucky night.”

 

Donna smiled at the small gift bag sitting on the seat of her truck. She couldn’t help feeling like the stars had aligned to bring her the perfect gift for Alex. More than that, though, was the warm glow she felt growing behind her ribs. It was time to go spend Christmas with her family.

**Author's Note:**

> Don't forget to read the other chapters! Find out what everybody got! https://archiveofourown.org/works/17124194


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